White House press secretary Carolyn Leavitt told reporters Thursday that Trump would hold Iran “accountable” for going back on its words, but added that “he’s always open to diplomacy.”
“They have expressed that they still want to reach an agreement with the President. We are talking to them, but still, the President will not allow them to fire on ships in the strait without paying consequences,” he said.
Trump had previously threatened to attack Iran’s power plants and bridges unless Tehran returned to the negotiating table, telling Fox News: “Next week it’s going to be really bad for them.”
On Thursday, a spokesman for Iran’s military headquarters said that if the US followed through on its threats, “all infrastructure in the region” would be “destroyed”.
Since last week, at least 30 people have been killed in Iran in renewed US strikes, government spokesman Fatemeh Mohajerani said.